City councillors will be back at the council table for the second day in a row Thursday, after laying the groundwork for the 2019 budget and approving committee chairs Wednesday.
Councillors are holding a special meeting to debate whether or not Ottawa should opt out of having retail cannabis stores in the city when they become legal in April.
The Ontario government has given municipalities until January 22, 2019 to decide.
Wednesday, the councils of Mississauga and Markham voted to opt out of having brick-and-mortar pot shops. Respective mayors Bonnie Crombie and Frank Scarpitti each say there are still too many unanswered questions.
The report Ottawa councillors will be discussing contains a recommendation from city staff to allow the stores, saying it could curb the effects of the black market and provide an economic boost.
Some councillors have publicly said they will be voting to opt out, but it remains to be seen if they’ll be in the majority.
With files from the Canadian Press.